The Brain Game
by dreamer154132
Summary: The Capitol realized the mistake they made with the Hunger Games. Instead of making games about violence and fights, they decided to make a game about brains and knowledge. Leighann Moore, just turned eighteen, is about to learn what its like to be in The Brain Game. What's more, she's in it with her best friend. And only one person can win and survive.
1. Chapter 1

**I do not own part of the ideas in this story. The rest is owned by me :)**

**Warning you, this isn't like a Hunger Games game. It's different but the basis of the story is the Hunger Games. Enjoy!**

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Chapter 1:

_She was free. Free from the witch's grasp. Free from the tower. Free from the life she had once known. Free to do anything she wanted, say anything she wanted, be with anyone she wanted. The air around her seemed the glow. Her features seemed mor alive then they had been in years. The air around her blew through the trees, making beautiful music to go along with a beautiful moment. A beautiful moment that would never end. A-_

"Leighann?" A voice called from the hallway adjacent to my room. Stashing the pad away, I grabbed at my science notebook, flipping to a random page about alpha and beta particles. Nothing that I cared about.

"Leighann?" A figure appeared. An elder woman, around forty-five, showed the face and body of a twenty-five year old. My mother. "Did you finish your homework?" She didn't enter the room, just stood at the door.

"Yes, Opal."

"Finished studying?"

Closing my chemistry book, I nodded again. "Yes, Opal."

"Finished your chores?"

Making a mental note in my head to clean under my bed, I nodded again. "Yes, Opal."

"Go running." She commanded, flicking pale blond hair away form her cold eyes.

"Yes, Opal."

Seeming pleased with my responded, my mother began leaving. I reached for my pad but stopped when I heard the clicking of heels coming back. I grabbed my sneakers instead.

A manicured hand held the wood of my doorway. "You move out tomorrow, don't you?"

"Yes, Opal." I said, tying my shoes.

"Excited?"

"Of course." I lied, not looking at her. I focused on my perfect shoes that sat on the perfect floor of a perfect house. And it all just seemed so perfect.

"Good." She moved away, without smiling and without saying goodbye. I wouldn't miss her.

Grabbing my pad, I shut the door, managing not to slam it. Ripping out a pair of clothes from my mostly empty dresser, I pulled them on and tied my shoes. Finally, reaching for my pad, I shoved it under my shirt, hoping it didn't look too suspicious.

I jogged down the stairs, holding my stomach. "I'm leaving, Opal."

"Sure, Leighann." I heard from the kitchen. "Oh, dear? Pick up some milk on your way back."

"Yes, ma'am." I said, after shutting the door. I stopped onto the street of my District.

District 3 was well known for its astounding architecture. Math was one of our finest subjects. Everyone majored in it. Everyone was brilliant in it. I wished I could've been that one person that wasn't so I could leave.

I lived in the suburbs with my mother, father and seven brothers and sisters. In the Districts, everyone had a big family. The bigger the family, the more brains. The more brains, the better the family. More credit to the family name.

I didn't want children.

As I made my way through the suburban area, I kept my eyes down. Mr. Lorenson drank tea on his front porch. Ms. Corso was next door, supervising her son while he fixed the car. Mr. Rooney sat with his face, neither of the speaking. Mrs. Guardino was picking up her mail. No one made eye contact. No one said hello. They probably wouldn't know my name if it weren't for the fact that my family held power. My father was famous.

I held my stomach and kept walking.

It was a big change from the suburbs to the urban area. The building seemed to be bigger. People crowded the sidewalks. Cars strolled by at a safe speed. It was utterly silent.

Seeing one of my favorite stores, I knew that the turn was coming up. Slipping into the alley, I walked behind the buildings at the edge of the District, right next to the fence. It was electrified.

I spotted the tree and threw my pad over the fence. I had always wondered what would've happened if I threw the pad at the fence but never tried. Maybe next time though.

I grabbed the sturdy branch and pulled myself up so that my chin touched the bark. Swinging my leg over the side, I flipped myself around. The branch was in between my legs and arms and my ankles were hooked at the heels. I slided my way to the trunk of the tree and turned around so I was able to stand up. Wrapping my arms around the trunk of the tree, I moved over to the other branch on the opposite side of the fence. Staying as close to the trunk as possible, my foot reached down to find the small hole that Briggs had made about a year ago. I put the tip of my toe in it and dropped my other leg next to it. Grabbing onto the edge of the branch, I swung myself onto the ground, grabbed my pad and began trekking to the sunflower hill.

The sun was just about to set.

I spotted a figure playing with a small yellow flower. It was sitting on the hill, looking at the sun. It was Briggs.

"Briggs?" I called to him. His head turned and a large smile appeared on his face. Fast walking over to him, I plopped down, tossing my pad on the ground.

"Hey, Lanny." Briggs said, handing me the flower.

"Thanks." I said, smiling. "Not like I could find these just anywhere."

"You're sarcasm wounds me." He flicked my nose and we lied backwards, staring up at the sky.

"What's the Institute like?" I asked him. Tomorrow was my eighteenth birthday. On your eighteenth birthday, you move to the Institute to prepare yourself for The Brain Game. The reaping was tomorrow as well, meaning I was eligible.

"Cold, empty, lonely, gray, boring," He stated. "Shall I continue?"

"Don't bother." I said. "So, no change?"

He let a sigh and involuntarily smiled. "No change."

"Joy." I muttered, sarcastically. "Reaping's tomorrow?"

"Must you bring up every bad thing that's going to happen in the next twenty four hours?"

"I don't know every bad thing that's going to happen in the next twenty four hours. I'm not psychic. That would be illogical." I paused just long enough to take a quick breath. "And even if I was psychic, I would tell you every bad thing that was going to happen in the next twenty four hours. You'd be ever so grateful."

"Don't be a smart ass." Briggs said. "You knew what I meant."

I turned my head towards his. "I know." I whispered. "Briggs, I'm afraid. What if I get reaped?"

"No one at the Institute knows your name. There's no way they would pick you. Remember? You vote four people in? Two girls and two boys? No one would reap you since they don't know you." He stopped for a second. "Don't worry, Lanny."

"I have to. Of course they'd pick a person they didn't know. Why vote their friends?"

"They aren't supposed to have friends."

"So? We're friends."

"I'd call us more acquaintances..." I shoved him, making him laugh. "Relax. I'm older than you and I'm not worrying."

"You should. You're in the top five of your class."

"Top two actually." I rolled my eyes as his smile turned smug. "Why worry? The chances are one in two hundred and fifty seven."

"That's not that good of odds."

"It's not that bad either." I felt him pull me into his arms. "Listen," His breath was on my ear. "Don't worry. I promise you, everything will be fine. You're going to come to the Institute tomorrow because you won't be reaped and then we're going to sneak out here and watch the sun rise before class."

"So confident I'll go with you, Mr. We're-Only-Acquaintances." He laughed in my ear making me grin. Briggs' laugh was the best sound in the world.

"What'd you draw today?" He asked, letting me go. We both sat up.

"Take a look." Briggs was the only person I ever let see my drawings. Not because I was self conscious about it, I knew I was pretty talented, but because it was illegal to do anything creative. That's how we met actually. In the midst of all the zombies here, Briggs was a singer.

"Amazing. Very telling." He handed the book back to me, looking impressed. He couldn't draw for his life while I could sing. But he was an amazing writer. We seemed to go hand in hand.

"Thanks." I grinned at him.

We lied back down, watching as the sky turned pink, orange, yellow and red before turning dark blue. We didn't say another word to each other. We didn't need to.

Finally, when the stars came out, I stood up. Briggs popped up next to me, shaking out his clothes.

"I should get going. I need to grab some milk." I said. "Will you take my sketch book with you? I'll get it from you tomorrow."

"I'm not sure, my Lannifer. Can you go a night without drawing?" He asked with fake doubt.

"Shut up." I pushed him again and began walking. He came up behind me, an arm wrapping around my waist.

"As you wish, my sweet." He said before zipping his lips with an imaginary zipper. I couldn't help but laugh.

We got to the tree that I had came from and stopped. I hated saying goodbye to Briggs. He was my other half. He was the only person I would ever trust.

I dreaded the day that we had to be arranged for a marriage. I would never see him again.

"Bye, Briggsy." I smiled sadly at him. In the darkness, I could see him roll his eyes. He bent down and kissed my left temple. The corners of my lips turned up.

Then, he was gone, not saying a word. Not only because he was staying silent after I told him to, but because Briggs never said goodbye. He once told me that he felt a goodbye meant the end of something and that we were only just beginning. He could be insightful like that sometimes.

I heard the sound leaves rustling and a loud thump. Watching the dark figure of my best and only friend fall, I let out a small giggle.

Yes, he could be insightful but most of the time he was just a doofus. I didn't care. I loved him like that.

Shaking my head, I climbed back over the tree. It felt like going into another world. Coming from something so beautiful and dreamlike, and going to a place where anything except academics was frowned upon. It was as if coming from a dream. I hated this reality.

I walked out of the alley into more silence. The crowd had cleared since when I was here earlier.

That was the only difference.

I hurried to the supermarket. I read once that they used to play music in the store. Children would run alongside carts and families would shop together. I wished I had been born in that time period. I fit in better there.

Grabbing the smallest carton of milk, to spite my mother, I paid and got out as quickly as possible.

The walk home was the same: Quiet and boring.

I walked into the house, putting the carton in the refrigerator. I left the kitchen for the living room where my mother was sitting on the couch, staring at a wall.

"I'm home." I said.

"Oh, hello Leighann." She snapped out of her daze. "Did you pick up the milk?"

"Yes, Opal."

"Did you run?"

"Yes, Opal."

"Did you finish your homework?"

"Yes Opal."

"Are you excited about moving out tomorrow?" She repeated from earlier.

"Of course, Opal." I responded the same, thinking about Briggs. Yes, I was excited.

"Good. Now, go upstairs and go to sleep. You have school tomorrow."

"Yes Opal." I nodded and left.

Preparing myself for rest took a shorter time than usual. Considering most of my belongings are gone, I didn't have much to wear so I stayed in my running clothes.

I lied down on my me bed and the lights went. Staring up at the ceiling, I drifted to sleep with only one thought in my mind.

Tomorrow, my whole life would change.

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**So, let me know your thoughts! **


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2:

The day of the reaping.

The only coherent thought I had when I woke up was just that. Then it was remembering Briggs telling me that everything would be fine. That the odds were two hundred fifty-seven to one. That we would watch the sunset rise over the field of flowers. I smiled at the thought of Briggs holding me like last night.

I tried remembering whether I did my trigonometry homework before sketching last night. I begged that I did. If I didn't... It was too scary to think about what would happen.

Standing up, I stretched out my legs. I should have ran last night. I made a mental note to run tonight.

"Leighann, it's time to get ready!" I heard a crystal clear voice call.

"Yes, Opal." I called back, taking my bag out from under my bed.

Pulling on my uniform and taking care of my hygiene, I was ready in minutes. I took one last look at the dull room I had resided in for the past eighteen years, a small smile appeared on my face. I wasn't going to be completely free yet, but I was one step closer.

"Goodbye, Opal." I said, walking into the kitchen.

She turned towards me, sipping a cup of steaming tea. "Oh, goodbye, sweetheart. Have a nice time at the Institute. Come and visit after you get out." She said, with a fake smile. I gave her a sarcastic smile back and turned away, exiting the house.

Slamming the door behind me, I hiked my bag up higher on my shoulder, watching as the sun pulled itself up into the sky. I hoped that was a good sign. Today will, hopefully, be perfect.

Getting to school took less time than usual as I was preoccupied with my thoughts. As soon as I got there, I stepped into my first class of the day, not making eye contact with any other students.

Since today was the day of the reaping, we only had to stay for a half a day. It was still about six hours of classes before we could leave but it was better than the twelve hours we usually had to withstand.

I sat down for a period of physics, pulling out two notebooks: One for the top that I put notes in, and one for the bottom that I doodled in. Usually just pictures of Briggs, the field, the forest, the sunset; things that reminded me that someday, everything would be okay.

A loud bell went off, telling students that if we weren't in class by now, we were late and would have to suffer the consequences. My old and balding science teacher locked the door after hearing the signal and started in on his lecture about kinetic force. Writing down little notes here and there, I tried staying awake until the bell rang after two hours.

I made my way to history, watching the cracks along the floor.

When I got there, the alarm sounded.

The alarm was a signal for the District that told us that a public whipping would be taking place. They didn't happen often but they were all brutal. And since today was the reaping, whoever was getting beaten would probably get voted.

The class followed our teacher in silence to the square in the middle of town, the same where the reaping would be held in a few hours. A large man was standing in front of the shackles that held a young boy, who's face I couldn't see. Governor Snow held a whip in his hand.

"Ladies, gentlemen, we gather here today to berate a young man who was caught with a sketch pad in his bag. As punishment, he will be whipped across the back fifty times. You are all here to see what will happen if you are caught with similar items in your possession." He handed the whip off to a younger boy that looked like his son. Then he moved out of the way and I accidentally let out a gasp.

Pushing people out of the way a little, I watched as the familiar face raised his head to show his face to the crowd. And the first loud crack sounded of leather hitting flesh.

A low scream vibrated against my throat. I couldn't stay. I couldn't watch Briggs be beaten like this.

But I wasn't allowed to leave.

Trying to remain emotionless, I watched as his face contorted in pain forty-nine more times. Every time his eyes clenched shut, my fists did as well. My bottom lip quivered but he never let out a sound, never shed a tear. By the end, his shirt was ripped and his back was bleeding.

Governor Snow made his way back on stage and took the whip from his son. "Now you all see what the consequence is if anyone should repeat this discrepancy. You may leave."

He stood and watched us all as we left. Not just all of us, but me. I stared back at him and his lip quirked up slightly.

Jumping back from my spot, I followed my history teacher back to the classroom where he resumed talking about a girl named Katniss Everdeen, who had something to do with the Capitol Rebellion, as soon as our butts hit the cold seats.

Seconds later, a student came in to the classroom and handed a note to the teacher. He nodded and turned towards the class.

"Leighann Moore, you may leave for the Institute. " He said, crumpling the piece of paper up and going immediately back to the Capitol Rebellion.

Grabbing my bag, I stepped down to the floor and started for the door. Before I left, I heard him say, "Good luck," quickly. Without answering, I let the door shut behind me.

I left the building, and started off for the Institute. It wasn't too far away so I decided to walk it.

I had thought that I would be going to the Institute after school and after the reaping but it was apparent that that wasn't the case.

I got to the doors of the large building of the Institute. It held thousands of students inside it but it looked so lonely.

Sighing, I made myself go up the stairs to the school where I would be staying at for the next few years.

I watched as the big doors shut, putting a barrier between the beautiful day outside and myself. Briggs was right; the school was cold, empty, lonely and boring.

The hallway was dimly lit. It was gray, too, like an old castle. Little lanterns lined the walls. The temperature seemed to have dropped twenty degrees. The hallways held no people. Swallowing hard, I was beginning to miss the the familiar fake smiles I got every morning, along with the repeated questions, and worry less school days.

A sign pointed me in the direction of the office where I got assigned a room number. The lady told me that everyone was meeting in the meeting room so they can decide who was to be reaped. I nodded at her and left to put my bag away before going to the meeting room.

On my way down another dimly lit, lifeless hallway, I saw a dark figure leaning against a wall.

"Oh, Briggs." I ran towards and his arms wrapped tightly around me.

"Sh," He said, his voice shaking. "Don't be too loud."

"It's going to be okay, I promise."

"No, it's not."

"Look, you're smart so-"

He let out a small laugh. "You think I'm worried about myself?" He let go and pulled away. His voice was hard and anger was etched in his features. "I was just in there. Your on the bottom of the list!"

"So?" I asked, trying to be quiet.

"That means that everyone's going to pick you!"

"Why would they do that? Don't they want to win?"

"They always pick the person on the bottom." Briggs said, bleakly.

"And that means," I started.

"We're both going to be in the Game." He said. "And only one person can win."

"One of us is going to die."

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**Hello!**

**Once again, I hope you enjoyed this and let me know what you think! Thanks for reading:)**


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